The First Mile

CHAPTER 4

Focus

While the end result of innovation can be breathtakingly simple, the process is anything but. Getting dozens of things to work together can overwhelm even the most experienced innovator. The key to speeding through the first mile is to focus on strategic uncertainties that have the most potential to derail the business—or to serve as the backbone of a sustainable strategy. This chapter provides more information on different types of strategic uncertainties, and then describes how to prioritize the most critical ones.

First, a definition. Dictionary.com says that something that is uncertain is “Not able to be relied on; not known or definite.” Uncertainties contrast to facts, which Dictionary.com defines as “Something that actually ...